Article 13 – Paid and Unpaid Leave

Leave days apply to regular workdays (Monday through Friday). Use of leave days is not required on weekends, statutory holidays or stat holidays in lieu.

13.1.1

Each Resident shall receive, during each year of Residency training, four (4) calendar weeks of paid annual vacation. This is equivalent to twenty (20) regular working days. Vacation leave is not required for activities which are considered normal aspects of a residency program such as teaching and college mandated education.

13.1.2

Vacation leave will be arranged such that any instance in which five (5) or more regular working days are taken consecutively, Residents will not be placed on duty the weekend directly before or after, and also, any weekend(s) which falls within the vacation period. Clinical duties will end at the end of the regular working day on Friday, no later than Friday midnight.

13.1.3

No individual rotation-specific vacation policy shall apply. In the case where rotations refuse a requested vacation period, the reason for refusal shall be shared with the resident and parent Program Director. If the reason is not deemed satisfactory by the parent Program Director, the Resident’s request shall be upheld. Any routine policy for refusal of vacation requests is deemed a violation of the collective bargaining agreement.

13.1.4

A Resident with an appointment period of less than one (1) year shall earn and receive vacation time at the rate of one and two-third (1 2/3) days per calendar month or major portion thereof.

13.1.5

A Resident shall receive regular pay in lieu of any vacation leave remaining at the end of an academic year if, for any reason, it was not possible to take the vacation leave within the academic year. Alternatively, if a consecutive appointment is being made, unused vacation leave to a maximum of two (2) weeks may be carried over to the following year with the approval of the Program Director.

13.1.6

Where practicable, vacation leave must be approved at least two (2) weeks ahead of the commencement date. Program Directors will not unreasonably deny vacation requests.

13.1.7

If a Resident becomes seriously ill, seriously injured, or hospitalized during a period of vacation leave, the Resident may apply to the Employer through the Office of Postgraduate Education to have the period of vacation leave replaced by sick leave. The Resident shall provide documentation to support the claim. If the request is approved, the period of vacation so displaced shall be reinstated for use as vacation and scheduled in the normal manner.

13.2.1

Residents shall, upon commencement of training/employment, be credited with fifteen (15) days sick leave. In the second (2nd) and subsequent consecutive year(s) of training/employment, sick leave shall be earned and credited at the rate of one and one-quarter (1 ¼) days per month of training/employment cumulative over the length of training/employment.

13.2.2

A Resident who is appointed for a term of less than one (1) year shall receive a pro-rata Sick Leave credit upon commencement based on the one and one-quarter (1 ¼) days per month of appointment.

13.2.3

Residents may use sick leave to attend their own medical appointments, to care for their children during illness, and to take their children to medical appointments.

13.2.4

A Resident shall provide evidence of such illness or disability as reasonably required by the Program Director. Residents shall notify the Program Director or the Program Director’s office when absent due to illness.

Compassionate leave with pay shall be granted to a maximum of three (3) days to attend to arrangements upon the death or serious illness where death is imminent of a spouse, common law partner, fiancé/fiancée, father, mother, child, brother, sister, mother or father-in-law, grandparent, legal guardian, or legal ward. An additional two (2) days with pay may be granted by the Program Director for travel purposes. Compassionate leave for instances not listed above, will be at the discretion of the Program Director. Leaves will not be unreasonably denied.

13.4.1 Maternity Leave

A pregnant resident is entitled to Maternity leave. Maternity leave shall be provided pursuant to The Saskatchewan Employment Act. Written application for Maternity leave must be submitted to the Resident’s Program Director as soon as reasonably possible, but in any event not less than four (4) weeks prior to the planned start date of such leave.

If the condition of a pregnant Resident so justifies, that Resident shall, upon submission of a medical certificate signed by a medical doctor have duties amended to meet the medical requirements. On call and night shifts will cease at twenty-seven (27) weeks of gestation unless the employee provides a medical note allowing them to continue with those duties. The inability to do call shall not be used to justify a demand that the employee cease work.

13.4.2 Supplementary Employment Insurance Benefit

Residents granted Maternity Leave will receive a supplemental benefit of ninety-five percent (95%) (inclusive of Employment Insurance) of their regular salary (based on pre-leave earnings) for a period of up to twenty-one (21) weeks (including the one (1) week waiting period.)

It is agreed that in such circumstances, the Resident’s total earnings (all sources) cannot exceed 95% of pre- maternity earnings. Regular weekly earnings for purposes of administration of this clause will be determined by dividing the Resident’s annual pay rate in effect on the last day worked prior to commencement of the leave by 52.14. The Employer’s obligation for payment of this supplement shall not extend beyond the period of the contracted appointment if the Resident has completed her requirements as set out by the relevant accrediting body.

13.4.3 Continuity of Employment Benefits

Accumulated sick and vacation leave as of the date Maternity/Parental leave commences shall be retained but will only accumulate during the paid portion of the leave (21 weeks) and not accumulate during the remainder period of Maternity/Parental leave.

Group Life and Long Term Disability insurance shall be continued as was the case prior to this leave subject to any conditions set by the underwriters.

Dental, Extended Health Insurance, and optional Life and Disability Insurances, may be maintained provided the Resident pays all required premiums during the unpaid portion of this leave. The University will notify Residents of the options and costs of continuing benefits during a Maternity/Parental leave.

13.4.4 Adoption Leave

A member who declares in writing to be the adoptive parent of an adopted child is entitled to adoption leave. The length and timing of the leave shall be consistent with the provisions in The Saskatchewan Employment Act.

As per the Act, the member is required to apply for this leave at least four (4) weeks prior to the date the member begins to care for the child (“care date”). If the member cannot give four (4) weeks’ notice, the Employer will accept as much notice as is given to the adoptive parents by Saskatchewan Social Services or the adoption agency.

The leave must commence on the care date, or at any time during the thirteen (13) week period prior to the estimated care date, and shall be of uninterrupted duration.

13.4.5 Parental Leave for Maternity or Adoption

A member who qualified for maternity or adoption leave is also entitled to parental leave without pay. The length and timing of the leave shall be consistent with the provisions The Saskatchewan Employment Act. The parental leave is in conjunction with the maternity or adoption leave and must be taken in one continuous period.

13.4.6 Parental Leave for Those Not Qualifying for Maternity or Adoption Leave

Residents who do not qualify for maternity or adoptive leave, and are as such the non-birthing parent of a newly born or adopted child, are entitled to parental leave without pay as pursuant to The Saskatchewan Employment Act. As per The Act the Resident is required to apply for this leave at least four (4) weeks prior to the commencement of the leave or as soon as possible in extenuating circumstances.

The Employer will provide five (5) consecutive paid workdays of parental leave for the non-birthing parent to be taken within thirty (30) days of the date of birth or adoption. 

Residents shall be entitled to paid leave to attend educational events (such as conference, courses and modules) at their discretion, either in-person or online, which are relevant to their academic program, recommended by their Program Director and approved by the Associate Dean of Postgraduate Medical Education. The leave available shall be a minimum of seven (7) and a maximum of twelve (12) regular weekdays per academic year inclusive of travel time and shall not accumulate from year to year. Weekends do not require the use of education leave days, as they are not regular workdays. College mandated education or training is considered part of the residency program and therefore does not require the use of education leave.

Residents approved for Education Leave shall be expected to provide a report on their educational activity to their colleagues and Program Director.

A Resident shall receive paid leave to sit the following examinations:

• Medical Council of Canada Exams
• Surgical Foundations Exam
• College of Family Physicians of Canada certification
• Royal College of Canada certification

The period of paid leave shall comprise the following: the day prior to outbound travel, the day of outbound travel, one (1) or two (2) days as required to attend the actual examination, and one (1) day for return travel. When travel is not required, the period of paid leave shall comprise of the day prior to the exam, and one (1) or two (2) days as required to attend the actual examination.

Leave of absence for any other certification examinations will be granted at the discretion of the Program Director and consistent with the above considerations as to duration.

Residents will not be scheduled on call three (3) weeks prior to each of their written and oral components of their Royal College Subspecialty Exam or College of Family Physician Exam. The remaining week of the twenty-eight (28) day rotation will not incur additional on call as a result.

Upon request a resident may be granted leave with pay for up to two (2) days in any academic year. This leave is intended for situations that need to be attended to but may or may not normally be scheduled in advance. In emergent situations, the Resident will inform their supervisor as soon as possible regarding the need to take such a leave. In non-emergent situations, the Resident shall consult in advance with their Program Director. Requests may be denied for operational reasons.

A Resident shall be eligible for ten (10) days of leave if the Resident, their child, or a person for whom the Resident is a caregiver, experiences interpersonal or sexual violence as defined in the Saskatchewan Employment Act. A Resident may take five (5) days of paid leave and the balance as unpaid leave.